CELTIC'S FIXTURE PILE-UP: DOES AMERICA HAVE THE SOLUTION?
- BY LIAM CARRIGAN
- Apr 9
- 3 min read
It’s not a theory that I personally buy into, but plenty of Celtic fans I’ve spoken to recently think that the recent change in match schedule has negatively impacted the team.
In other words, since we stopped playing two games a week, the team seems to have lost sharpness and focus.
Managers and players alike want less games. TV companies and sponsors want more.
Club owners and league authorities are caught in between the wishes of their greatest assets and those of their biggest customers.
Something has to give, and I’d like to suggest a radical solution.
Rolling Subs: Could it Work For Celtic and Football in General?
With FIFA hosting its inaugural World Club Cup this summer, and the next proper World Cup coming in summer 2026, for many footballers the close season break may come down to mere days, where it used to be months.
And yet, in sports like Ice Hockey and Basketball, teams can play 3, 4 or sometimes even 5 fixtures a week and no-one has an issue.
Both of these sports have a shorter duration than a 90-minute football match.
There’s also plenty of stoppages for advertising, half-time shows etc. that, in my opinion, football does not need. I sincerely hope we never end up with that kind of circus.
However, the physical strain on players is comparable. You might disagree, but in high school I always found playing basketball to be far more physically tiring than playing football.
And before anyone jumps on me in the comments, I’m talking about before I became a goalkeeper!
But the main reason that basketball players and ice hockey players can play so much, so often with little in term of side effects is rolling subs.
Imagine, Celtic are playing a tough European tie, and we’re a goal up with ten minutes to go. But we’ve used all our subs.
Suddenly, as happened with Denmark last month, our goalie hits the deck in agony. He clearly can’t play on, but he has to.
The game suffers, the fans get frustrated and most of all, a player needlessly aggravates what might already be a serious injury.
On the other hand, if we had rolling subs. He goes off immediately while play is stopped, gets treatment. Comes back on after 5 minutes, saves a penalty and we win the match.
The kind of scenario happens all the time in sports that permit rolling subs.
We’re already seeing signs of a move towards this. Since 2020, we’ve been allowed 5 subs during a match. There’s also been the introduction of an additional substitution for cases of suspected concussion.
As far back as 1998, FIFA changed the rules at the World Cup, allowing international teams to essentially name their entire squad as substitutes, to be brought on when required.
So, the roots for what seems like a huge, fundamental change to the game of football are already there. They have been for some time.
Rolling subs would reduce injuries. It would shorten recovery times for anyone who got injured. It would allow more games in an increasingly cramped calendar, which means more TV money.
And best of all, it would mean we get to watch Celtic play more often.
For me, it’s a no-brainer.